The Anglican Church of Canada came into being as a result of missionary activities by churches in the British Isles and particularly the British Missionary Societies. The church owes much to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel and the Church Missionary Society, both based in London, which sent missionaries and teachers to the new land in the 18th and 19th centuries. The first bishop was consecrated in 1787. Provincial synods date from the 1860s and the general synod was organized in 1893. There are now four ecclesiastical provinces.

The Anglican Church of Canada is the second largest Christian community in the country. The church's membership includes about 10 percent from the Indigenous peoples of Canada, First Nation, Inuit and Métis, as well as from many of the immigrant populations of Canada, such as British, Chinese, Scottish, South African, Haitian, Sri Lankan, Indian, West Indian, South and Central American, Pacific Islanders, etc. Both women and men are ordained to the priesthood and the episcopacy. The church has a long history of involvement in social and environmental justice issues, working ecumenically and internationally to promote peace, justice, human rights and the stewardship of creation. It is a member of KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives. The Primate's World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) provides the church's response to international development needs and to natural disasters, while Partners in Mission nurtures mission relationships with the other provinces of the Anglican Communion.

The Indigenous members of the church are working towards greater self-determination within the Anglican family, and the whole church continues to support First Nation, Inuit and Métis people in their struggle for justice and the recognition of their rights.

Since 2001 the Anglican Church of Canada is in full communion with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC).